Top Recreation Companies To Invest In 2015

Top Recreation Companies To Invest In 2015: Smith & Wesson Ho lding Corp (SWHC)

Smith & Wesson Holding Corporation (Smith & Wesson), incorporated on June 17, 1991, is a manufacturer of firearms. The Company manufactures a range of handguns, modern sporting rifles, hunting rifles, black powder firearms, handcuffs, and firearm-related products and accessories for sale to a range of customers, including gun enthusiasts, collectors, hunters, sportsmen, competitive shooters, individuals desiring home and personal protection, law enforcement and security agencies and officers, and military agencies in the United States and globally. It sell its products under the Smith & Wesson brand, the M&P brand, the Thompson/Center brand, and the Walther brand. The Company manufactures its firearm products at its facilities in Springfield, Massachusetts and Houlton, Maine. On July 26, 2012, it sold all of the assets of Smith & Wesson Security Solutions, Inc.

Firearms

During the fiscal year ended April 30, 2012 (fiscal 2012), the Company introdu ced multiple new handgun and modern sporting rifle models, and one new bolt action rifle platform. The Company's rifle introductions included the addition of the M&P15 300 Whisper to the Company's line of modern sporting rifles. As of April 30, 2012, the Company participated in three categories of the long-gun market and both core categories of the handgun market.

Handguns

The Company manufactures an variety of handgun models that include revolvers and pistols. A revolver is a handgun with a cylinder that holds the ammunition in a series of rotating chambers that are successively aligned with the barrel of the firearm during each firing cycle. There are two general types of revolvers: single-action and double-action. The Company's small-frame revolvers have been carried by law enforcement personnel and personal defense-minded citizens. The Company's revolvers are available in a variety of models and calibers, with ap! plications in virtually all profe ssional and personal markets.

The Companys M! &P15 Series of modern sporting rifles are designed to satisfy the functionality and reliability needs of global military, law enforcement, and security personnel. These rifles are also popular as sporting target rifles and are sold to consumers through the Company's sporting good distributors, retailers, and dealers. The Company has a range of product portfolio of modern sporting rifles, which includes a lower price-point, sport model, a .22 caliber model, and a fully automatic model designed for the exclusive use of military and law enforcement agencies throughout the world.

Hunting Firearms

The Company manufactures three lines of bolt-action rifles under its Thompson/Center brand consisting of several models in each line. The Company's hunting rifles are offered in 16 different calibers. Bolt-action rifles operate by the cycling of a bolt handle that allows for both the loading and unloading of rounds through a magazine fed system.

D uring fiscal 2012, the Company introduced the Dimension bolt action rifle platform. Under the Company's Thompson/Center brand, the Company also offers seven models of American-made single shot black powder, or muzzle loader, firearms. The Company offers eight models of interchangeable, single shot firearm systems that deliver numerous gun, barrel, caliber configurations, and finishes. These systems can be configured as a center-fire rifle, rim-fire rifle, shotgun, black powder firearm, or single-shot handgun for use across the entire range of big- and small-game hunting.

Handcuffs

The Company manufactures handcuffs and restraints in the United States. The Company fabricates these products from the carbon or stainless steel.

Smith & Wesson Academy

Through the Smith & Wesson Academy, the Company offers instruction designed to meet the training needs of law enforcement and security custom! ers world! wide. Classes are conducted at the Company's facility in Springfield, Massachusetts or o! n locatio! n around the world.

Specialty Services

The Company's services include forging, heat treating, finishing, and plating. It provides services to third-party customers.

The Company competes with Ruger,Taurus, Beretta, Glock, Heckler & Koch, Sig Sauer, Springfield Armory, Bushmaster, Rock River, Stag Arms, DPMS, Browning, Marlin, Remington, Ruger, Savage, Weatherby, CVA, Traditions, and Winchester.

Advisors' Opinion:

• [By Ben Levisohn]

  Shares of Smith & Wesson (SWHC) have gained 17% today after the gun maker reported better-then-forecast earnings.

  Bloomberg News has the details on Smith & Wesson’s results:

  Earnings per share in the quarter ended Jan. 31, rose 35 percent to 35 cents, the Springfield, Massachusetts company said in a statement yesterday. That beat the 29 centaverage estimate of eight analysts in a Bloomberg survey. The company said it estimates full-year earnings per share of between $1.39 and $1.42, increasing its previous estimate of between $1.30 and $1.35.

  Sales of handguns, which include the companys popular M&P pistols, grew 30 percent as the company sought to increase market share, Chief Executive Officer James Debney said in a conference call yesterday. Total revenue grew 7 percent to $145.9 million, surpassing estimates of 142.9 million. Income from continuing operations rose to $20.1 million from $17.5 million.

  Wedbush’s Rommel Dionisio and Alicia Reese fret about Smith & Wesson’s retail-sales trends:

  In the wake of the Newtown tragedy in Dec. 2012, widespread consumer fears of tightened gun control pulled forward industry demand in early 2013. Now facing unusually difficult y/y comparisons, retail sales trends the past several months have been down significantly y/y (see Figure 1), a trend which should continue through at least May or June! . We also! note from our recent channel checks that overall retail inventories, which were in short supply last spring, have largely normalized…

  S&Ws recent decision to stop selling its most important product line of M&P pistols
  in California, effectively shutting down much of its total sales in this major market
  rather than comply with the states new microstamping law, will likely begin to
  impact results in FY15.

  Barron’s offers its take here.

   

• [By Jim Woods]

  An expression of such confidence was seen today when gun-maker Smith & Wesson Holding (SWHC) announced plans to buy back up to $15 million of its stock.

• [By Melvin Backman]

  Earnings: Four big names are reporting next week: Shipping giant FedEx (FDX), gun maker Smith & Wesson (SWHC), tech giant Oracle (ORCL, Tech30) and BlackBerry (BBRY, Tech30).

• [By Rich Smith]

  This series, brought to you by Yahoo! Finance, looks at which upgrades and downgrades make sense, and which ones investors should act on. Today, our headlines feature gun makers Sturm, Ruger (NYSE: RGR  ) and Smith & Wesson (NASDAQ: SWHC  ) -- both recipients of new buy ratings this morning. But the news isn't all good, everywhere. Before we get to those two, let's take a quick look at why ...

source from Top Penny Stocks For 2015:http://www.topstocksforum.com/top-recreation-companies-to-invest-in-2015.html